Wednesday, January 26, 2011

We are fortunate at the Cold War Air Museum to have the support of various groups and friends. A recent visit to the outstanding Garland Heliport near the Museum generated this video of the Mi-24 in flight.

Our friends at SKY Helicopter shot this video of the Mi-24 from one of their helicopter news ships, then edited it with their production equipment and added music just for fun!

Our thanks to the guys (and gals) at Sky for this fun production. Visit their web site (and YouTube) for more information and videos about their operations and equipment.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

One of the interesting parts of military aviation is both how little and how much things change.

Recently we posted a picture of one of our directors, Peter Coz, grabbing a moment to study his flight manuals while resting against the Mi-24.

Looking at this picture, I was reminded of a photo in my family albums, from 1945. In it, another marine is taking a moment to read his mail before shipping out to the Pacific.

This young marine landed on Iwo Jima in the fifth wave of marines and was severely wounded on the beach. He survived three days without medical attention because the medic who first saw him believed he was dead. The volcanic sand of Iwo Jima got into the severe wound on his jaw and caused the blood to coagulate and saved his life. When the graves registration people came to bury him, they discovered he was still alive.

Eventually recovering and continuing with a military career, he retired from the U. S. Army as a Master Sergeant after two tours in Viet Nam. I am proud to say that Marine that landed on Iwo Jima, my uncle, still lives today in good health in North Carolina.

If photographs and blogs had been around in Roman times, I'm sure they would have shown Centurions in similar poses of recline. Marines and soldiers learn to grab a moments rest whenever and wherever it can be found.

Cold War Air Museum

The Cold War Air Museum is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to the restoration and maintenance of Cold War era aircraft with a special emphasis on aircraft flown by the former Soviet Union.

Most of the museum's 20+ aircraft are in flying condition or being made ready for flight.

The museum is located on Lancaster Municipal Airport, twenty minutes south of Dallas, Texas. The museum has tour hours of 10am to 4pm on Saturdays but is open all day most weekends. There is a cafe on the field that serves a full breakfast and lunch menu.